1. MOTACILLA. 



473 



a streak of black through the eye, running through the lores and 

 along the upper edge of the ear-coverts ; throat, fore neck, and chest 

 black, the feathers of the latter fringed with white ; remainder of 

 under surface of body white, including the under tail-coverts ; sides 

 of breast and flanks clear ashy grey ; thighs ashy white ; axillaries 

 and under wing-eoverts Avhite, the latter mottled with blackish 

 bases near the edge of the wing ; quills dusky ash-brown below, 

 white along the edge of the inner web : " bill black, plumbeous at 

 the base ; legs and claws black ; iris brown" [Oates). Total length 

 7'3 inches, culmen 0-(j, wing 3-G, tail 3-7, tarsus 1'95. 



The adult female in breedinfj-jjlumage does not differ from the 

 male, but is apparently longer in attaining the black throat and black 

 head. Eoth, however, are fully donned in due course. Total length 

 7'8 inches, ciUmen 0-55, wing 3'55, tail 3-7, tarsus 0"S5. 



Adult in full winter ])lumage. Blue-grey on the back as in the 

 summer dress ; the wings and the tail similar ; the head black, 

 with a broad white frontal band ; the facial markings the same 

 at both seasons, but instead of the throat being black in winter, 

 there is merely a black crescent on the fore neck. This appears to 

 extend upwards very rapidly, and birds obtained in Burmah show 

 traces of the change in November ; one in the Swinhoe collection 

 from Amoy is considerably advanced, even on the 29th of October. 

 It is evident that in this species the black throat is assumed by a 

 direct moult and a change of feather going on at the same time, 

 the newly moulted plumes being white at the base, black at the tips, 

 the latter colour spreading downwards with extreme rapidity. 



Hah. From Kamtschatka and Amoor Land to South China, breeding 

 throughout this extent of country, wintering in the Burmese coun- 

 tries and extending westwards to Nepal. In North America from 

 Alaska * to California (the latter locality only an occasional winter 

 resort in all probability). 



a. Juv. ffistiv. sk. 



b. 2 ad. sk. 



N.W. America. 



Capt. Kellett and Lieut. 

 Wood [P.l. 

 Island of Askold, May E. B. Sharpe', Esq. [P.]. 

 (Doerries). 



c. J juv. hiem. sk. Suiffu distiict, Oct. R. B. Sharpe, Esq. [P.]. 



{^Doerries). 



d. cJ ad. festiv. sk. Amoor Laud, May 13. R. B. Sharpe, Esq. [P.], 



e. S ad.ffistiv.sk. Amoy, China (^. (Szym- Gould Collection. 



hoe). 



f. $ ad. hiem. sk. Amoy, China {II, Swin- Gould Collection. 



hoc). 



* I have received the following information in a letter from Mr. Eidgway : — 

 " There is no valid record of the oceurrencc of any species of MotaciUa in Alaska, 

 although M. ocularis undoubtedly wanders there occasionally from the opposite 

 coasts of Asia. All our Plover-Bay specimens, including the one figured in the 

 ' Corwin ' report, are true M. ocularis, of which we have a specimen from Lower 

 California (see I'roc. L'.S. Nat. AIus. vol. iv. p. 414). L. M. Turner saw a White 

 Wagtail on the island of Attn, in the Aleutian cliain. which was probably this 

 species, although it may have been Jil. amurcndu (=37. Ivgcns, Kittl.)." 



